Wellard head stockman to represent Western Australia as a Beef Champion

October 14, 2011

Wellard congratulates head stockman Clinton Gartrell on being chosen to represent Western Australia at the 2011-12 Cattle Council of Australia Rising Beef Industry Champions Initiative.

Clinton, who has been employed by Wellard for the past two years, works with Wellard’s team of stockmen and stockwomen on-board the company’s livestock vessels to achieve optimal animal welfare outcomes, as well as working on-board on long and short haul voyages himself.

The Western Australian Farmers Federation and the Pastoralists and Graziers Association coordinated the State’s selection and interview process, with a panel comprising of WAFarmers and PGA livestock representatives and National Australia Bank (NAB) Agribusiness executives interviewing each candidate.

Selection was based on demonstrated level of industry awareness, comprehension of beef industry issues, leadership capacity and suitability to represent Western Australia at the Cattle Council/MLA Annual General Meeting in Longreach, Queensland.

Wellard Rural Exports Managing Director Steve Meerwald said Clinton exemplified the men and women employed by Wellard and the livestock industry.

“Clinton has a tremendous work ethic and a comprehensive knowledge of cattle management which is complemented by a desire to improve his knowledge at every opportunity and share that knowledge with the rest of Wellard’s livestock personnel including the crew on our vessels,” Mr Meerwald said.

“He will be a great representative for Western Australia.”

Speaking from the MV Ocean Swagman en route from Townsville to the Indonesian port of Panjang with 6,500 cattle, Mr Gartrell said he was honoured to receive the Western Australian nomination and looked forward to the finals judging next month.

All six state finalists will travel to Queensland in November, to present to the Cattle Council their solutions for a challenge facing the Australian beef industry. They will experience the national beef policy debating forum at the Cattle Council meeting, and will develop leadership and public speaking skills through tailored workshops.

The 2011 -2 NAB Agribusiness Rising Beef Industry Champion will be announced at the gala dinner on 16 November 2011, and the winner will represent Australia at an international Livestock Conference in Denver, Colorado, USA in early 2012.

Clint is the second Wellard employee to represent WA in two years. Wellard Rural Exports Livestock Operations Officer Courtney Clemons attended the Rising Champion Award in 2010.

Wellard is a world leader in the production and distribution of livestock and grain.

Its two largest subsidiaries are Wellard Rural Exports, Australia’s largest livestock exporter and ship owner, and Wellard Agri, a large mixed farming land owner and operator specialising in the production of grains, legumes and livestock.

Wellard Rural Exports has supplied quality dairy and beef cattle and sheep and goats to the world for more than 30 years, and its investment in the live export industry is without peer. Based in Fremantle, Western Australia, the company’s operations cover every aspect of the export chain, including feed milling, livestock aggregation, road transport, feedlot facilities throughout Australia and modern shipping.

The company’s flagship carrier, the MV Ocean Drover (formerly the MV Becrux), is a purpose-built livestock carrier capable of carrying 75,000 sheep or 18,000 cattle to major markets around the globe. She was commissioned in 2002.

The MV Ocean Shearer (formerly the MV Stella Deneb) can carry 125,000 sheep or 25,000 cattle, or a combination of both.

Two new, technologically advanced, purpose-built vessels, the MV Ocean Swagman and the MV Ocean Outback, were launched in 2010. They offer unparalleled levels of safety for the livestock, crew and vessel, and can transport 7000 cattle, 25,000 sheep, or a combination of both.

Wellard Agri owns and operates eight farms covering 33,000 hectares across three agri-hubs. The two northern hubs are located at Dongara and Watheroo in Western Australia’s central midlands and one is located at Kojonup in the Great Southern region of WA.

The Dongara hub is home to The Grange, a 14,500 hectare property which is considered one of Western Australia’s blue chip farming properties.

The remaining landholding totals more than 18,000 hectares, of which 14,000 hectares is cropped to a variety of grains and legumes. The other 4000ha is devoted to sheep production, including the famous Hyfield Poll Merino stud at Kojonup. In addition, Wellard leases an additional 14,500ha for livestock and grain production.

Wellard Agri also has operations in the farm machinery sector, through management of the CLAAS Harvest Centres at Katanning and Esperance for the Landpower range of farm machinery.